5 top tips for the luxury business traveler visiting Seattle

Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood is the tech start-up district and home to Amazon, Microsoft, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It’s a hotspot for business. This former industrial area now bustling with fresh energy is right in the middle of Seattle, making it a convenient home base for exploring the city when you’re off the clock. Here are five things to look out for if you find yourself there on business: Pan Pacific Hotel Located in the heart of this thriving walkable neighborhood, the Pan Pacific is a luxury hotel that caters mostly to business travelers. It offers a fabulous spa, an award winning restaurant and the best, most unobstructed views of the Space Needle of any hotel in Seattle. If you like to keep up your healthy regime while away, there’s a gym and the hotel is directly above Whole Foods Market for easy access to healthy fare and sundries. The Space Needle Suite offers modern luxury and incredible views of the city’s architectural icon. Enjoy a phenomenal in-room dining experience with a private server who will design your very own menu, printed with your name and selection chosen just for you. This hotel aims to please in a big way and has an exceptionally friendly staff. Vida Spa After a long day of meetings, unwind with an Ayurvedic massage at Vida Spa. It’s the only luxury spa in Seattle that offers authentic Ayurvedic massage and once you’ve experienced this unforgettable and unique treatment, you will probably want more. After answering a few basic questions, they will determine your character type called a dosha, and use a custom blend of essential oils meant to harmonize your mind and body from the inside out. Seastar Dine at local celebrity Chef John Howie’s restaurant Seastar for excellent sushi. Seastar has a vibrant menu and offers private dining for meetings. Its location in the South Lake Union neighborhood makes it the perfect spot for a business lunch. Space Needle After soaking up amazing views of the Space Needle from your hotel room at the Pan Pacific, it’s fun to visit the needle up close. Dinner in the revolving SkyCity restaurant yields spectacular 360-degree views of twinkling city lights and the majestic Cascades, Olympics and Puget Sound. You might be surprised who dines at the Space Needle, it’s not just tourists but locals, business men and women, global dignitaries, sports figures, and movie stars like Al Pacino who was there recently. Dine by live piano music, ambient lighting, and scenery that will make your jaw drop. Wild Ginger Wild Ginger is a popular restaurant for business lunches and features Southeast Asian fusion cuisine. People like Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and sports teams hold meetings and cut deals in the Dragon Room. You can also catch an evening show at the restaurant’s attached theatre, The Triple Door. Leah DeAngelis is Editor of Best Travel Gear. If you would like to be a guest blogger on A Luxury Travel Blog in order to raise your profile, please contact us.